Some popular computer gaming applications, such as the Guitar Hero® games, employ a special controller that has some similarities to an instrument (e.g., is generally guitar-shaped), but which differs significantly from an actual instrument. The controller for use with Guitar Hero® has no strings and instead has colored fret buttons and a strum bar. The controller provides two types of information to the gaming software, referred to herein as selection information and timing information. The selection information is provided by depressing the fret buttons, and the timing information is provided by toggling the strum bar. A series of icons, each corresponding to a color and position of one of the fret buttons, is displayed on the game screen as music is played. The player's goal is to hold down the fret button corresponding to the icon shown and toggle the strum bar at the same time that a note passes a marked area on the game screen.